Study Finds 54% Expect to Stress Organic Gardening

In celebration of its 50th anniversary, Organic Gardening did what specialty magazines often do to mark an anniversary. It commissioned a study.

Called "Gardening in America," the survey, conducted last year by National Family Opinion Research, concluded that more than half (54%) of America's estimated 60.5 million outdoor gardeners plan to garden organically or minimize their use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in the next year.

Other findings:

--The intention to use organics appears to be stronger in younger gardeners: 60% of those 19 to 34 years old, compared with 48% of those 50 to 64 and 46% of those 65 and older.

--Among geographic regions, 58% of Midwest gardeners intend to go organic, as do 56% of those in the Northeast and 53% in the West. In the South, which has more gardeners than any other region of the country (nearly 9.6 million), 50% say they will go organic in the next year.

"Gardening in America" is the first comprehensive study of the activities and attitudes of America's gardeners, said spokesman Bob Martin. The results were based on 44,000 responses to a mailing sent to 75,000 households and 3,000 16-page questionnaires (a 75% return) sent to gardeners based on expertise and area of interest.